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WASHINGTON, Aug. 26, 2011/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — This morning, thousands of Iranians from 41 states across the U.S. staged a huge and colorful rally outside the State Department urging the immediate delisting of the Mujahedin-e Khalq (PMOI/MEK), Iran’s main opposition movement. They also called for ensuring protection of MEK members in Camp Ashraf, Iraq, according to Human Rights and Democracy International.
The ensuing march stretched several blocks around the State Department. The police were very cooperative by blocking the lanes for the peaceful marchers.
Among the participants were more than 100 university professors, eminent scholars and physicians from all over the U.S.
A number of former senior U.S. Government officials including Louis Freeh, Director of Federal Bureau of Investigation (1993-2001); Ed Rendell, Governor of Pennsylvania (2003-2011); John Sano, former Central Intelligence Agency National Clandestine Service first Deputy Director ; and Colonel Wesley Martin (Ret.), Coalition’s counter terrorism commander in Iraq and U.S. commander for protection of Ashraf spoke at the rally and asked the U.S. to live up to its commitments regarding 3,400 Ashraf residents. They reiterated that no delay in removing the MEK from the FTO list is permissible. Patrick Kennedy, U.S. Congressman (1995-2011), and son of late Senator Edward Kennedy, moderated the rally.
In his speech, the British Conservative MP Brian Binley announced the support of 4,000 parliamentarians from across the globe, including a significant number of members of the UK Parliament and House of Lords, for delisting the PMOI from the U.S. FTO list.
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the Iranian resistance, who was addressing the rally via satellite link from Paris, said, “It has been more than a year since the ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, which ordered the State Department to review the terrorist listing of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Iranian people and the Iranian Resistance have paid the price for this unjustified delay with the blood of their most courageous children…The terror listing in the U.S. is openly used as a justification to legitimize such bloodletting, both by the cruel mullahs in Tehran as well as their proxy government in Iraq…”
“Clearly, the U.S. bears special responsibility for ensuring the protection of these residents on the basis of its agreements with every single one of the residents in Camp Ashraf,” Mrs. Rajavi reiterated.
Video of rally: http://youtu.be/8cB0LCSFSe4
SOURCE Human Rights and Democracy International